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Adjacent segment degeneration (ASD) is discussed to impair long-term outcome after lumbar interbody fusion. Nevertheless the amount and origin of degeneration and its clinical relevance remain unclear. Only little data is published studying quantitative disc height reduction (DHR) as indicator for ASD in long-term follow-up. Forty patients (23 men, 17 women) (group 1: degenerative disc disease, n = 27; group 2: lytic spondylolisthesis, n = 13) underwent lumbar 360°instru-mentation and fusion between 1991 and 1997. Preoperative and follow-up lateral lumbar radiographs were studied. Disc heights of first and second cephalad adjacent segments were measured by Farfan's technique and Hurxthal's technique modified by Pope. Clinical outcome was studied using Oswestry disability index (ODI) and visual analogue scale (VAS). Age, gender, prior surgery, fusion rate and number of fusion levels were investigated as potential factors affecting the outcome. Mean follow-up was 114 (72-161) months. Clinical outcome showed an improvement of 44.6% in ODI and 43.8% in VAS with a tendency towards better results in group 2. Fusion rate was 95%. Disc height of the first cephalad adjacent segment in all patients was reduced by on average 21% (Farfan, P \ 0.001) and 19% (Pope, P \ 0.001), respectively, and that of the second adjacent level by on average 16% (Farfan, P \ 0.001) and 14% (Pope, P \ 0.001), respectively. A tendency towards more disc height reduction (DHR) in the degenerative group was observed. Advanced age correlated with advanced DHR (P £ 0.003, r = 0.5). Multiple level fusion led to a more pronounced DHR than 1-level fusion (P = 0.028). There was a tendency towards more DHR in the first adjacent disc compared to the second. Gender, prior surgery of the fused segment and fusion level did not affect the amount of DHR. There was no correlation between the clinical outcome and DHR. Lumbar fusion is associated with DHR of adjacent discs. This may be induced by additional biomechanical stress, ongoing degeneration affecting the lumbar spine and advancing age. However, clinical outcome is not correlated with adjacent DHR.

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Patients with primary impingement and articular sided partial tears of the supraspinatus are often treated by subacromial decompression without repair, if the extent of the tear is estimated to be below 50% of tendon thickness. It has been questioned whether repair of these cuff lesions is necessary, because these tears could progress to full thickness tears with deteriorating clinical results. Our hypothesis was that subacromial decompression without repair of the supraspinatus tendon leads to significant clinical improvement for patients with grade I and II articular sided tears without progression to a full thickness tear on a regular basis. 46 consecutive patients (av. Age 59.2 years, range 33-76.6 years) were retrospectively reviewed after an average follow up of 50.3 months (36-86 months). 26 patients (43.5%) had a grade I tear according to Ellman, which was left alone, 20 patients suffered from a grade II tear, which was debrided. Clinical outcome was assessed with the ASES Score and ultrasound evaluation was performed on all patients to detect possible progression to a full thickness tear. The average ASES Score significantly improved from 37.4 to 86.6 points (p < 0.0001). The mean postoperative Constant Score was 87.6 points. Only three patients (6.5%) progressed to a full thickness tear detectable on ultrasound examination. Only one of these patients had a poor result with an ASES Score of 35 points, the other two were very satisfied and had an ASES score above 90 points. 8 patients showed no more signs of partial tearing on ultrasound and these patients had an average ASES Score of 93.1 points. Overall clinical outcome was rated excellent in 35 cases (76.1%), good in 5 (10.9%), average in 2 (4.3%) and poor in 4 (8.7%). Our results indicate that good and excellent results can be achieved mid- to long term by acromioplasty without repair of the rotator cuff in articular sided partial tears grade I and II. These results reach almost 95% of the value of a healthy shoulder. A better result on ultrasound examination was associated with a superior clinical outcome, while progression to a full thickness tear was rare.

The new LP-ART presented here is a technically simple, yet effective instrument for evaluation of the proprioceptive function of the shoulder. In contrast to former test setups it is feasible in daily routine. Compared to healthy controls, patients with unstable shoulder joints show significant proprioceptive disorders that can be quantified by the LP-ART.

Arthroscopic Bankart repair for the treatment of recurrent traumatic anterior shoulder instability repair using bioabsorbable tacks offers reliable results with respect to failure rate, range of motion, and shoulder function during a minimum follow-up of 7.0 years. In contrast to previous reports on arthroscopic Bankart repair, results did not deteriorate during follow-up.

Lumbal spinal stenosis is gaining more and more clinical relevance because of changing population structure and increasing demand on lifequality in the elderly. Current treatment recommendations are based on clinical experience, expert opinions and single studies rather than on proven evidence. The radiologic degree of stenosis does not correlate with the patients' clinical situation. It is not the main factor indicating surgery but rather the typical history and spinal claudication. Symptomatic patients with light to moderate complaints should undergo multimodal conservative treatment. Epidural injections, delordosating physiotherapy and medication are useful. In patients with severe symptomatic stenosis surgery is indicated after a conservative treatment of 3 months. Relevant pareses or a cauda equina syndrome are absolute indications for surgery. The general aim is to decompress sufficiently while maintaining or restoring segmental stability. A laminectomy is not necessarily required. In patients with accompanying degenerative Meyerding grade I-II spondylolisthesis or instability in functional radiographs, fusion or dynamic stabilisation are recommended in addition to decompression, depending on the patient's age and activity level.